DIY: Newborn Pictures

Hello!

It's been awhile since my last post... After a brief sabbatical to welcome my baby boy, Mason, I am finally getting back to blogging and projects! And since I am loving being a new mom I thought my first blog post back should be about my little bundle of joy.

When I was pregnant I started noticing the cutest newborn pictures on Pinterest and Facebook so I checked out local photographers. Holy Moly! They charge a lot... Maybe I'm just cheap (well that's definitely true) but I couldn't believe how much this cost. Most photographers charged $150-250 for the session and then some had minimum print orders of $300-500 and if you just simply wanted the CD of prints then bet on around $600. Yikes! For pictures that my son will likely not care about, ever... I figured that was pretty steep. The pictures are mostly just for me, to share his cuteness with family and friends. So I decided to DIY it and from one amateur to another here are some tips that helped or could have helped me make my newborn pictures successful!

Tip #1: Patience

Duh, right? haha.... I'm sure any parent will say that patience is needed in dealing with any child but it's definitely important for taking newborn pictures. I set aside a whole day for these pictures and I'm glad I did because it took nearly the whole day! After preparing Mason (nursing, changing his diaper, rocking him to sleep) as soon as we started setting him up (removing his onesie and diaper) he peed on my sister (Tip #2) and then again when we set him in his crib to clean up the first pee mess. :) We didn't wait long enough to let him fall into a deeper sleep and that's where a lot of patience comes in. We were too excited to start snapping!

Tip #2: Recruit a Side Kick

My sister was going to be in town the weekend after Mason's birth so I figured she would be a good person to help with the pictures. For ease you should try to shoot the baby within the first 10 days. Babies are calmer, sleep more, and they curl up during that time which makes it easier to "mold" them for the pictures. I could have recruited Seth to be my side kick but he lacked patience which, from tip #1, we know is necessary. After the first pee episode Seth suggested we just call it a day... hadn't even snapped a single shot yet. Good thing I'm stubborn! :)

So why is a side kick important? Well, while you are snapping pictures someone has to spot the baby! They are fragile and at any moment they can move so you want to be sure they are safe. Plus my sister was able to move and change sets/props while I settled him down and kept him calm. 

Tip #3: Warmth

Babies like the warmth. It's soothing and comfortable. If you want to get those cute bare bum pictures then you need the room to be warm. I used a small space heater and set the temp at 77 degrees. This was really warm for my sister and I who were in tanks and shorts but great for Mason when he was baring it all for the pictures. Also, you might consider wrapping (Tip #4) your baby in between pictures sets to make sure they don't get chilled. Lastly, have a hair dryer on hand. We used it occasionally when we noticed him moving and stretching a little bit plus it provides some white noise which can be really comforting to newborns (Tip #5).

Tip #4: Start with Swaddling

This tip is not something I did but I wish I had! I thought the bare bum shots were adorable so I jumped right into them. I should have started by swaddling him in some cute fabrics (cheesecloth is pretty cute). This is a good way to ease him into the session. Babies like to be swaddled anyway so he or she will likely appreciate the warmth and comfort and may even give you a smile or too.

Tip #5: Noise

In the first couple of weeks Mason really liked white noise. It was soothing to him so we kept the hair dryer on hand and I downloaded a white noise app on my phone which was really helpful. (It's called Relax and Sleep.. pretty cool because you can choose lots of different sounds. Mason liked the heartbeat and the summer rain combination. :))

Tip #6: Cheap Props

Before Mason was born I searched the internet for props. These are also overpriced! Who pays $10-15 for a knit cap or a blanket which was basically just cut fabric? I ended up finding great deals on eBay. I bought a knit dinosaur cap, angel wings, and an owl cap (which ended up being huge because I guess newborns in China have really large heads). So I spent $20 for all of those items and then I found a children's tie at Goodwill for $2 and some glasses for $1. I also bought a faux rabbit fur at Hobby Lobby (with a 40% off coupon) for $6. In total I spent less than $30 for all the props and didn't have any other expenses because I had everything else (blankets, fabric, books, baskets, our wedding rings, etc). There are a ton of cute props out there or things you can use at home like your favorite pearl necklace for a baby girl. :)

I hope all of these tips help and get you the best newborn pictures! Let me know if you test it out and how it works.... or if you have any tips of your own.

<- Kassy ->

DIY: Mobile

Hello again! :)

This next project (like many over the last few months) are in preparation for our baby boy! It was a fun, easy, and inexpensive project. Depending on a theme you have chosen for your nursery you can do this too! I created a mobile for the nursery that went with the theme (nautical) using sailboats and twine/rope. I have some steps and tips to create your own.

Step 1: Gather Supplies...
This project was good for the budget because I could use a lot of inexpensive material. Since the objects (sailboats) are small I used scrap fabric. Whenever I go to the craft stores I check the remnants section for good pieces that I can use for small projects. I got all this material for about $8! That's really stinkin good considering I have leftover material too! :) You'll see random appearances in later projects I'm sure.

So in total my materials list was:
Fabric - $8 (JoAnns)
1 wooden dowel - $.25 (Wal-Mart)
Twine/rope - $2 (JoAnns)
I had batting from random pillow projects already so that was a money saver for sure!
Buttons (to add some fun details... clearance and some I had already) - $4.50
Glue which I had on hand too but I think it's just $2-3 for a small tube of this heavy duty stuff.
Wood beads to add some detail... I wasn't happy about only finding this big container but I'll hold on to them for other projects - $3.50 (Wal-Mart)

So check out what 3-4 hours and about $20 gets you.....

Step 2: Sewing!!
Before I cut the sailboats I made a mini template out of some cardboard so that they were all about the same size. Cut all four sailboats and the star in the middle (two of each item). I hand stitched these because it creates a different look than with a sewing machine so anyone can definitely do this at home!

One thing I kept forgetting was to sew in the twine/rope... I would have pull out my stitches which was a pain so don't forget that you have to hang them somehow and it's better to incorporate the rope and/or string into the item instead of trying to attach it later! (Looks better and is easier). When I got to the end of each item I stuffed them with batting and then finished out the stitch.

Also, I quickly attached the buttons to each boat after they were all sewn together to add a little something extra.  (see picture below?!)

Step 3: Attach to dowel
I had help from my husband with this part. He cut the dowel in half with his saw (to make sure it was even and pretty) but you can cut these with bolt cutters too. He also notched groves in the middle of each so they would cross each other nicely. I use glue to adhere them and wrapped the with the twine/rope from the star to make sure they stayed put. After that dried I attached each boat to the ends of the dowels using the twine/rope that I sewed into them and used glue to make sure they stayed in place. The rope was long enough that after I wrapped it around the dowel and tied it in a knot I pulled it up to the center where I tied all the pieces together. If you want the mobile to sit level you have to make sure the strings from the dowel to the center point are the same length otherwise it will hang lopsided!

Step 4: Hang!
I used a hook to hang it from the ceiling and that worked perfect (it didn't weigh much so there are lots of other options to hang it too but just in case it gets yanked a few times). My husband installed the hook to make sure it wasn't coming out (following the directions :)) and then we tied the mobile to the hook.

And that's it!! It was really an easy project and I think it adds something nice to the room. :) We hung it above the changing table to keep our boy distracted while we change him but you can also hang it above the crib though it's more likely to get yanked there so make sure it's sturdy/durable!

Anyone interested in trying something similar? Let me know! I love to hear about different projects. :)

-> Kassy <-

DIY: Baby Room Alphabet Wall Decor

Can I just say that this was such a fun DIY?! The nice thing is that you can use the idea in a variety of ways in your own home (monograms, "Welcome", last name, etc). I saw, on Pinterest (trouble as my husband calls it), some cute baby rooms with the full alphabet with letters in different fonts, colors, and sizes. It's so fun and educational! :) So I decided to have that as a focal point in the baby's room and use the nautical theme to decorate the letters.

Over a few months I kept an eye out for unique letters and deals. I found most of the letters at Michael's, Wal-Mart, JoAnn's, and Hobby Lobby. I had a few letters (S, K, and M since those are our initials) too. The best finds were the letters where I didn't have to do anything because they were already painted and/or decorated just right! I kept a note in my phone (task app) with all the letters I had so that when I was out and about I could easily remember what letters I still needed.

Once I had all the letters I made a plan... not sure I do anything without a plan so this was no exception. :) I laid out all the letters as I would hang them on the wall to determine colors and decoration so that I didn't have a bunch that were similar in the same area.

With a plan in place it was time to get creative! My favorite time. :) I (along with my lovely friend Kristen) painted most of the letters that needed work and used some mediums to enhance them... i.e. rope, trimmings. Some I painted with designs as well including stripes or to look like a lighthouse. A few weren't painted and just used rope, trimmings, and a couple letters had cork because it was a good color and neat texture and one letter was covered in a walnut stain. Once I knew what colors I needed for each letter (from my plan) it was easier to decide on a design. I can't stress the importance of a plan enough.. don't skip this important step!

I placed all the letters on the floor in the layout again so that we could come up with a plan (another... I know.. haha.. I can't help myself) to hang all the letters. We measured the top row and found out that the left edge of the "H" was the center.

We were able to use screws/nails for a lot of letters and those that didn't have spots to hang from screws/nails we used these Command strips that are removable and re-positionable. I was concerned about the potential of letters falling off the wall since they will be above the baby's crib so I used more strips than necessary but I have peace of mind so it was worth it.

Using the "H" we started hanging the letters from there since it was the center.   

We were able to keep it fairly centered still even though we didn't measure each letter's distance from the last. We used the same method for the second row of letters.

This production totaled about $120 for the letters, trimmings, and the mounting hardware/strips. Aside from the time I took shopping for the letters, it took about 3 hours to decorate the letters and an additional hour to hang. But that's not bad for the fun impact I think this Alphabet Wall Decor makes!

-> Kassy <-